The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is seeking public comments on a proposal to reroute the approved but unbuilt Gateway South transmission line at the Colorado-Utah border. The proposal, submitted by PacifiCorp doing business as Rocky Mountain Power, would reroute approximately three miles of the Gateway South transmission line south of the existing Bears Ears transmission line and span the Raven Ridge Area of Critical Environmental Concern.
In December 2016, the BLM issued a Record of Decision to approve the Energy Gateway South Transmission Line Project, which includes a 416-mile single circuit 500 kilovolt alternating current transmission line that traverses Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah.
The 2016 decision authorized relocating an approximately two-mile portion of the existing Bears Ears to Bonanza 345 kilovolt transmission line (operated by the Western Area Power Administration) to the north side of the approved Gateway South right-of-way to eliminate multiple line crossings and avoid the Raven Ridge Area of Critical Environmental Concern. The recent proposal poses an alternate route and would not change the location of the existing Bears Ears transmission line.
A transmission line spanning the Raven Ridge Area of Critical Environmental Concern requires an amendment to the White River Resource Management Plan since the area is managed as a right-of-way exclusion area. If approved, the resource management plan amendment aims to mitigate engineering constraints with the existing Bears Ears to Bonanza 345 kilovolt transmission line and minimize impacts to the Raven Ridge Area of Critical Environmental Concern.
Public comments must be submitted by Jan. 20, 2022. Written comments may be submitted online via ePlanning: https://go.usa.gov/xHM8U. Comments may also be mailed to BLM White River Field Office, Attn: Heather Sauls, 220 East Market Street, Meeker, CO 81641.
Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, and/or other personal identifying information in your comment, please be aware that your entire comment, including personal identifying information, may be made publicly available at any time. While individuals may request BLM to withhold personal identifying information from public view, the BLM cannot guarantee compliance.
HOPEWEST PRESS RELEASE | Special to the Herald Times
